


Metanoia

by orphan_account



Category: The Derp Crew (Youtube RPF)
Genre: Angst, Everyone hurts, M/M, Romance, Sorry Not Sorry, Space AU, have some tissues
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-04-10
Updated: 2017-06-21
Packaged: 2018-10-17 05:21:04
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 3
Words: 5,602
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10587279
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: “How far will you go to save family?”Derp Crew Space AU





	1. Chapter 1: An Unlikely Alliance

In the distance from where Steven laid he could see a small caravan, midget sized creatures struggling to start a fire. Sweat rolled down the side of his dirty face, Steven squinting past the rays that came from the two suns above in the polluted sky. The caravan was about 120 yards away and Steven slipped down behind the sand dune. He tried to remember how and where he learned to eyeball a distance, but nothing came to. Everything except his name was a blur; relationships, family, education, when he arrived on this godforsaken planet, and where he came from all unknown. All he knew for certain was that when he woke up he was stuck under a metal sheet, ‘Z3’ was engraved into the front side of his hand, and there were dog tags hanging from his neck. On the dog tags was his name, engraved into the slightly charred metal. Steven peeked over the sand dune again just in time to see the caravan being scattered about.

Near the middle was a hovering vehicle with a rocket engine, a person wearing multiple layers of clothing waving away smoke from the front engine. A mile or so away were three other people with similar looking vehicles, driving straight towards this person who had hopped onto their ride and began driving away. Steven hopped over the sand dune and stumbled down the long hill, taking this chance to try and scavenge the area for any food or water to quench his dying thirst and hunger. Sand slipped into his shoes and his laces untied, Steven sometimes tripping over his own laces and getting a face full of sand. After tripping, stumbling, and getting his foot stuck in the sand a few times he finally reached the point of interest. Instantly Steven began searching, throwing empty cans around and jumping over the sad excuse for a campfire.

Steven’s search was stopped when the three vehicles from before circled themselves around him, creatures in all black suits getting off. One of the three tapped at their wrist, a virtual image coming up with symbol-like writing underneath. On the virtual image was a person with Steven’s appearance except there was a scar over the right eyebrow. Steven lifted up his hands in a simple surrender when he noticed their rifles, wincing when the back of his knees were hit and he was forced to the ground. In the distance he saw the fourth vehicle stop atop a sand dune, the stranger looking back down and Steven was forced to look away when his head was pushed down. He felt sand press against his face as the creatures cuffed his wrists against his back. A rifle was pressed against the back of his sweating head, the safety turned off. Before he could be shot the one holding the gun was shot instead, falling back with a laser shot through it’s head. The other two creatures struggled to attack back only for them to be shot as well, Steven feeling the cuffs be released when the owners got shot down.

His savior was the fourth vehicle rider, knelt down on the other side of his vehicle with a sniper rifle that glinted in the harsh sunlight. Steven saw him raise a thumbs up, hopping on the vehicle and driving over. When he reached Steven the human had taken one of the laser rifles and filled it with ammo, just in case. Holding the gun felt natural for some odd reason and Steven began to aim around the area, pretending to shoot. The driver didn’t speak, getting off the smoking bike and walking over to kick one of the creatures in the face. Its helmet fell and Steven saw just how ugly the thing was with lizard-like skin and one eye above it’s nose, metallic and letting off a dull red haze. Black ooze rolled down from the wound on it’s face, pooling on the sand below.

“Shit,” the stranger cursed, raising a pistol to Steven’s face who in returned raised the rifle. “What kind of shit have you got me into? Why are the Bounty Hunters after you?”

“What? Bounty Hunters? I don’t know,” Steven rasped out, coughing from the lack of water. “I- I really don’t. I’m just as confused,” the man lowered his pistol and clicked his tongue behind the dusty gas mask, turning around. Further away were three more Bounty Hunters, speeding towards them and Steven noticed that the helmetless alien’s wrist was beeping. “I think they called backup-”

“Do you know how to drive a strider?” The rag wearing man rushed to his strider, opening one of the many bags that were attached to the seat and pulled out another gun. He shot two spots in the sand and the space in between was filled with electric wire, the man doing this three more times until the gun ran out of ammo. His gun was tossed away and the hood of his vehicle was lifted, ripping a canteen off his belt and pouring water in. He closed the hood and walked past Steven, taking out a knife and cutting the metal eye off the alien.

“I don’t think so.” Steven mumbled and tensed when his wrist was forcefully grabbed, led towards the strider. Not really having a say in the matter, Steven sat behind the man who started up the strider while occasionally glancing behind them. The engine roared a few times and then took off, speeding through the desert with dust picking up in their tracks. Scared of falling, Steven leaned forward and wrapped his arms around the driver’s waist, fingers curling into the layered rags.

“How far away are they in clicks?” The term spoken was foreign to Steven who peeked over the man’s shoulder, eyes narrowed. He glanced behind and noticed that two of the three Bounty Hunters got their strider engines blown out by the wire, the third close on their tail.

“0.009144 klicks,” Steven couldn’t understand what came over him, his body reacting before his brain could catch up. The other grumbled something in another language, the words sounding harsh and accent thick. He leaned forward more so the strider’s tip-tilted downwards and began picking up. “The other two are catching up now too.” He watched the Bounty Hunters get their striders started up again, shooting lasers at them.

“Can I trust you?” He asked suddenly, having to practically yell over the loud engine. Steven felt tears slip down his eyes from the harsh wind, closing his eyes and wishing he had a mask as well to protect himself.

“What?” He yelled back and felt the driver shift around, Steven feeling his hands be removed from the other’s waist and placed on the strider’s steering wheel.

“I’ll take that as a yes. Keep driving forward and press the green button when I tell you to,” opening his eyes, Steven beginning to blush when the man sat himself down on his lap. He tangled his ankle around a bag strap, leaned off the side, picked up the rifle Steven took and began to shoot in the Bounty Hunter’s general direction while Steven clung to the wheel for dear life. It was hard to learn this thing, how the controls were different than they seemed; pulling up on the steering wheel made the strider go down, moving left made the strider move right, and it was the other way around for the other directions. He soon got the hang of things and the two raced through the desert, flying off sand dunes and racing past traveling caravans or scavengers who were rummaging through the sand. “Press it!” Steven obeyed and hit the button. “Merda...” The other cursed quietly, Steven glancing over in worry.

A laser had skimmed past his face, cutting one the gas mask strap and burning it. The mask fell and Steven could now properly see his face. He looked completely human besides the yellow tinted cheeks, orange irises, and the tattoos that were only on the right side of his neck. His dark brown hair was whipped back by the wind and he was grinning from the thrill of it all, cheering when he landed a shot. The shot strider exploded and began tumbling back, sand and dust picking up from the impact. Steven looked forward and screamed when he almost drove into a spaceship wing, the strider spinning in circles. In fear, he grabbed the other’s hood and held him up while he struggled to gain control again. When he did gain control Steven saw that they were nearing a spaceship graveyard, the strider going faster than the other two striders behind them thanks to the boost. That’s when Steven got an idea.

“Do you trust me?” Steven yelled down to the other, tugging on the steering wheel to turn the strider around. If he could boost off a spaceship they had a chance of flying over the Bounty Hunters and breaking off the chase. It was just a theory, but Steven had a good feeling about this.

“What’s the percent?” The other called back, pulling the rifle back as he struggled to reload.

“Thirty percent?” Steven questioned and slowed the engine down, hovering over the sand.

“I trust you.” It was shocking to hear this from the brunette who was forced to climb around Steven, the two now back-to-back. Glancing back, Steven made eye contact with the male whose orange eyes were now a shimmering green and his cheeks had lost their yellow color. He was given a quick smile, forcing his eyes forward to stop staring. When the Bounty Hunters entered the spaceship graveyard he began to drive again, easily picking up speed. They slipped right through the middle of the two, lasers flying past them and a couple hitting Steven. He could feel blood drip down his cheek and shoulder, leaning forward so his stomach hit the steering wheel and dodging the lasers. When they rode up the wing his hair flew back, Steven tangling an ankle around a bag strap.

Before the strider reached the end he hit the green button, boosting them off and sending them flying. Laughter sounded behind him and Steven couldn’t help laughing himself, the strider roughly hitting the ground. When Steven glanced back he noticed the distance growing, the Bounty Hunters soon out of sight.

“I’m Steven, by the way.” He called over the roaring engine when things calmed down, panting heavily and thankful when he was passed a canteen of water.

“I’m Chilled. Here, let me drive,” the two switched places and Steven leaned against Chilled’s back, eyeing the sky above. “I’m going to drop us at my place and when the second sun comes back up I can drop you at the nearest town. I suggest not traveling when the second sun is down or else you’ll be stuck with the Forbidden,” Steven was too tired to question, drinking the last drop of water and sighing contently. He dipped a hand to feel the sand brush past his fingers, glad to finally have time to relax. Chilled had been watching him, looking forward when Steven noticed him watching. “You aren’t from around here, are you?”

“I don’t know,” Steven admitted truthfully, looking up and removing his hand from the sand. He noticed that through the pollution were dull stars and wondered if one of those stars was actually a planet and was the planet he came from. “I really don’t know.” Silence fell over them both, Steven reaching up and playing with the dog tags around his neck. Steven’s attention was grabbed when he noticed a light, peeking over his shoulder. The mechanical eye Chilled had taken earlier was flashing in his pocket and then stopped, Steven pushing this to the back of his head. He closed his eyes and fell into a thoughtless trance, watching the sand dunes pass and the second sun lower itself from the sky.


	2. Chapter 2: Not Everyone Is A Hero

Steven slowed the Strider down and eased over a sand dune, brushing his hair back out of his face. He glanced over his shoulder to find Chilled slumped up against his back in deep sleep, strap cut mask cradled in his arms and sniper rifle resting on his lap. The alien muttered a few words in his native language, Steven facing forward again with a tired sigh. It took them a few hours in reaching Chilled’s hideout, but it was overrun with Forbidden and the two narrowly escaped them. Now they had been driving for a complete day, Chilled just recently taking a break and allowing Steven to drive. Steven let his thoughts wander off, focusing on his main problem; his memory loss. Not only did it render him completely useless to Chilled it made him useless to himself, unable to answer any questions. He glanced over at his companion once again, curiously eyeing the tattoo under his ear and sighing when nothing came to mind.

“Do you ever stop sighing?” Chilled groggily asked, shifting around. Steven glanced around to find the alien irritably eyeing him, brown eyes standing out in the darkness surrounding them.

“Sorry, I’m just… Thinking,” Steven replied back vaguely, rubbing his cut cheek that stung when blown up sand hit it. “About my memory loss. I can’t remember anything except my name, yet here I am with combat skills I never knew I had and the ability to theorize and make strategy plans. Then there are those Bounty Hunters from earlier that had planned on killing me. Why the hell did they want me? What did I do to deserve a bounty on my head? Then... there’s you.”

“What about me?” He shifted around some more, the alien now sitting up to stay awake. Steven held back the urge to sigh, shrugging instead.

“Why did you save me? You’ve made no sign of knowing me and I obviously can’t even remember meeting you before, so why bother saving me? A stranger.”

“You want me to be honest?” Steven nodded. “I don’t know,” an awkward silence rose from Chilled’s pause. Steven narrowed his eyes and struggled to see what was ahead of them, the darkness from the one sun affecting the area around them. Even if there was still a sun in the sky it gave no light on their side of the planet, darkness settling in around them. He pressed a button on the steering wheel, the Strider headlights flashing on. “I’m not really the ‘hero’ type.”

“Yet you acted like one yesterday,” Steven countered with accidental malice, the alien tensing up behind him in reaction. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to offend you- if I did.”

“It’s fine. I know I’m not a hero- I’m the complete opposite of one. You mentioned that you have no memories, right?” Chilled changed topics, Steven clearing his throat and nodding again.

“Nothing. Just my name.”

“Well, I might as well fill you in on things. From what I can see we’ll be stuck with each other for a bit until we come across a town,” the alien shifted around some and Steven sat up straight when he felt the gun’s point press into his hip, Chilled now turned towards the left and watching the sand dunes pass. “The planet we’re both stranded on is Stromia 3ZO. It’s the closest to the two suns and the most dangerous. No one comes here willingly,” he spoke softly, his voice giving the same warm feeling that the Strider headlights were giving off right now. Steven was surprised his voice could be this soft sounding. “Except the Forbidden.”

“Who are these ‘Forbidden’ people? I know you’ve been warning me about them and we’ve escaped them a few times, but what and who are they?” Steven raised his voice, the engine making more noise than before.

“Exiled Bounty Hunters who come here for the hell of it. Every time the second sun lowers they use the darkness and sandstorms to their advantage, ambushing unknowing caravans to take captives or scalps for money,” when Steven began yawning the two switched places, Chilled now being the driver and Steven lying against his back. He thoughtlessly stared into the polluted sky, watching the warm toned sun shine behind gray- almost black- clouds. “They are not allowed to attack the Underground and that’s our only safe haven during these three days.”

“What’s the Underground?” He yawned, head rolling back and resting against Chilled’s shoulder. The alien didn’t care, focused on driving them through the desert. Steven turned his head to the side a bit, watching how the sun followed his eyes and how some other far away stars and planets faintly appeared through the clouds. “How… Many planets are there?” Steven asked quietly, reaching up towards the sky. His fingers curled back slightly and in his view, he was cradling a planet in his cupped hand. It was green, greener than anything on this desert planet.

“The Underground is this place capital city I guess you could. Everyone there tries to appeal to each other and seem tougher than they are. To be honest, I’ve only gone there to make deals in the black market, turning in scrapped parts for money or food,” Chilled peeked over his shoulder, meeting Steven’s eyes and the now blue-green irises seemed to shimmer a bit. “As for planets there are fifteen and the capital planet is alien-made. The one you are currently admiring is Durilia; our system’s most beautiful planet.”

“Dur… il… ia…” Steven spoke each syllable out, trying to mimic how Chilled spoke and pulling his hand back. He watched how Durilia stood out more than the other few planets he could see, hand now resting on his propped up knee. “Maybe… I come from there.”

“Maybe. I’ve never been there myself,” he curiously peeked over his shoulder towards Chilled who was back to driving, the gas mask hanging from his neck. “It never seemed appealing to me. Lo la prenderei là se io potessi.”

“What?”

“Nothing,” Chilled replied quickly and fell silent, ending their conversation short. Steven sighed and closed his eyes, wishing time could move faster. When he opened his mouth to speak the Strider suddenly stopped, jerking him forward. A hand wrapped itself around his wrist and both fell to the ground, Steven luckily being caught before he could be sent flying. “Shit, stay low,” he spoke quietly, Steven opening his eyes and keeping his chest level with the sand. The alien reached back to grasp his gun, brushing some hair back in the process. Nearby was a caravan being run by three aliens, each speaking in mumbled words and gestured around with knives. Steven swallowed dryly and reaching back for his own gun just in case things got hairy. Before he could reach the rifle Chilled shot, hitting one alien in the head and quickly shooting again. “Hey!” 

When the two aliens were shot the third ran, Steven scrambling after him. He easily caught up and the two hit the ground, the brunette holding the alien down. Chilled came walking over, shutting the alien’s threats up when he showed his sniper. “Start talking.”

“¡No tengo que decirle nada!” The alien yelled back, spitting out sand. Chilled simply sighed, lowering his gun and shooting its shoulder. Steven closed his eyes when the alien screamed in pain, green blood shooting out from the laser wound and spilling out onto the sand. “¡Cedo cedo! ¡Qué es ello que usted que! ¡Por favor, le diré que algo solamente no me hace daño más!”

“Why in the hell is a caravan traveling out during the Forbidden’s time? You should all be in a town or dead.” Steven got up off the alien and stood by Chilled who now straddled the alien down, taking out a pistol instead of his sniper rifle. The pistol was placed under the alien’s chin, Steven watching his companion’s eyes turn yellow and noticing his right ear start blinking a light blue. In his ear was a mechanical device that blinked every time the alien spoke.

“Trabajamos bajo el mercado negro. Nuestro jefe quiso el combustible para nuestro nuevo envío de artesanía espacial-”

“What spaceships are you talking about? No one in the Underground deals with that in the market anymore!” Steven could only understand what Chilled was saying, the other alien’s words sounding like a bunch of gibberish.

“What is he talking about?” His words fell on deaf ears, Chilled taking the safety off his pistol and pushing it against the alien’s chin.

“Answer me! Who sells these ships?”

“Ohm! Ohm Wrecker!” The alien screamed out, trembling now in fear. Light shot out from the pistol and the gunshot noise echoed throughout the area around them, alien’s shot head slumping back. Green oozed out into the sand, Steven watching it slip and stepping back.

“H- he was innocent,” Steven stuttered out, watching the blood pool around. “This- we don’t do this!” Chilled stood up and removed some rags off. Now his left arm was completely revealed, tattoos running up the tan skin and slipping under his sleeve. His eyes were a dark orange, cheeks flushed black that blended in with the lighting around them. Kneeling down, Chilled tied the removed rags around the alien’s throat to stop the blood from falling and pulled out a knife.

“I told you I wasn’t a hero,” Chilled lifted the alien’s arm and revealed a swirled mark, using his knife to cut the mark off. He started to walk back towards the Strider, Steven having no choice except to follow. He stopped in front of the alien’s dead body, watching the green blood get soaked up by the rags. Swallowing the lump in his throat away, Steven shakily stepped over the corpse and kept walking. The two sat on the Strider in tense silence, the Strider headlights being flickered on and the engine roaring. “It may take you awhile to understand this, but,” he broke the silence again, Steven glancing over to Chilled who was avoiding eye contact. Both eyes were forced forward, eyes a lighter orange now. “No one here is innocent.” And he finished talking, Steven unable to respond and instead just watching the three corpses disappear behind a sand dune.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Translations:  
> Lo la prenderei là se io potessi = I'd take you there if I could
> 
> ¡No tengo que decirle nada! = I don't have to tell you anything
> 
> ¡Cedo cedo! ¡Qué es ello que usted que! ¡Por favor, le diré que algo solamente no me hace daño más! = I yield I yield! What is it that you what! Please, I'll tell you anything just don't hurt me anymore!
> 
> Trabajamos bajo el mercado negro. Nuestro jefe quiso el combustible para nuestro nuevo envío de artesanía espacial = We work under the black market. Our chief wanted the fuel for our new space crafts


	3. Chapter 3: Answering With A Question

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> oh look an update

“It’s been years since I’ve come here,” Chilled spoke quietly, his voice just loud enough for Steven to hear over all the turning gears behind them. Steven tensed when he felt the elevator shake, fingers curling around the rusty poles. They were vulnerable, the elevator at any time eligible to break and send them dropping. It caused him to tighten his grip on the poles. “Wear this. It’ll save your lungs from the high levels of pollution and keep your identity secret. Aliens don’t usually hold your… Appearance,” he handed over his gas mask and Chilled glanced around when the elevator had stopped moving. “Let me do all the talking.”

“Gladly. You seem to the know every single language and to talk your way around.” Steven replied back quickly, struggling with the mask. When he felt the straps get tugged he dropped his hands, allowing Chilled to strap the mask onto his head. He kept eyeing the alien’s blurry face, constantly wiping the lenses that were smeared with dust. When he saw faded blood on Chilled’s clothes it caused him to glance away, the dead alien’s body still visible in his head even though they were miles away now.

“I don’t know every single language. I have a translator I bought from the black market a few years back,” he gestured towards the lightly glowing device nestled in his ear, that being the one thing Steven could properly see through the dust. “We can try getting you one as well seeing that you’ll be leaving the planet and each planet has a different language,” Steven felt something soft tie around his hand, thumb running over the dirty cloth he had been given. It was hiding the mark he still couldn’t understand. “Let’s start moving before we attract attention. They aren’t very… Welcoming,” Chilled pushed open the metal gates, Steven raising an arm when bright lights entered the dark tunnel. When his eyes adjusted he found himself being led through a neon city, the dusty lenses giving him a limited field of vision but it was enough to awestruck him. Chilled constantly was checking over his shoulder back at the wide-eyed human, sometimes being forced to rush back and grab his hand when Steven would start trailing off the path.

All sorts of aliens tried selling their illegal items off towards the two, Steven’s arms being tugged and different beeping devices being pushed into his face. Every single one of them caught his eye, Steven wishing that the place wasn’t so dangerous and Chilled wasn’t being so protective so he could properly look around. He, however, didn’t complain and silently followed along until Chilled abruptly stopped walking. “Wait out here for me.” Chilled let go of Steven’s hand and entered the sand brick building, Steven sitting himself down on top of a cushioned stool. He watched aliens come and go, each with their own destination in mind with faces that could never be memorized. When his eyes fell upon a group in black did the faces begin being memorized, Steven’s eye being caught by the man in front.

His right eye was cybernetic, a dark green that stood out amongst all the bright neon colors around them, and there was a screen in his arm. Beside him was a blonde, his left eye also cybernetic and purple with a threatening smile across his lips that was daring someone to come attack them. There were two others with helmet covered faces, a few paces behind the front two and walking instep. Steven noticed the first man lift up his arm, a map rising up from the screen and there was a moving line above the green screen. When he zoomed in Steven noticed that the red dot on the map led straight towards the building Chilled walked in, the cyborg's eye Chilled removed days ago now coming to mind.

“Shit shit shit- Chilled! Chilled!” Steven called inside the building, the Bounty Hunters noticing his presence. “We have to go!” Chilled didn’t reply forcing Steven to start moving when one of the lackeys raised their gun. He dropped to the sand and narrowly dodged the shot, clumsily getting to his feet and rushing into the crowd in hopes they might lose sight of him. Steven ripped the mask off so he could properly see and breathe only to regret his decision, all the bright lights and loud noises hitting him head on. There was no mercy given by any, the lights making his head dizzy and the noises deafening his ears. He started losing his way, rushing down a metal staircase and using the shadows to his advantage. With sweat rolling down his neck and head, Steven wearily watched the group of Bounty Hunters storm on past. Swallowing dryly, he continued further down the staircase until the room opened up.

He was standing an arena, the walls lined with rows and rows of benches currently filled to the brim of drinking aliens. Each cheered towards the middle where a large cage was, the poles connecting into the ceiling and floor. Electricity danced around the poles, spikes lining the inside of the cage directed towards the arena fighters. At the top of the cage was a hole that allowed sunlight to drip inside, kicked up sand and dust particles becoming visible thanks to the light. Steven gripped onto the mask and pushed through the crowd near the cage where the noises grew louder. A few aliens bumped into him and sent Steven right at the bars, the electricity nipping his fingers and causing him to step back. When he rose his head up his eyes came into contact with another person, a male low to the ground and face covered by a fox mask. Across the male was an alien, bulky and swaying from side to side. Steven watched the man run forward, knock it down, and finish the job by snapping its neck. The watching aliens grew louder by each passing second, Steven standing there and watching as the winner walked around in a circle.

“I’m guessing you all want more, huh?” The cage fighter screamed towards the cheering crowd, dust rising from where his boots kicked the sand. Steven could only watch, unable to speak back towards the odd person who may just be the answer to all his problems. In the far back, the sand bricks were pushed open revealing a hidden exit, a lizard creature being pushed in. The lizard tried to fight back only for the hidden door to be shut on it, the cage fighter being oblivious to this all. When the lizard started inching closer Steven decided he couldn’t stay quiet, pushing a drunken alien away.

“Watch out!” Steven called out just in time, the fighter ducking when the lizard pounced at him. Slipping the mask on over his face, Steven noticed the eye holes close up and begin to glow a faint blue to match his sash. Taking the sash off, the other human began to slowly walk in a circle around the frantic lizard. It’s tongue slithered in and out of it’s broad sized mouth, yellow teeth glinting in the light. Steven watched the long tail lash around, the tail metal with adorning spikes slamming against the sand. When the lizard charged forward the cage fighter didn’t move from his spot, crouching low to the ground. The lizard easily picked him up and swallowed, hissing when the crowd began booing. As the lizard rushed to the cage exit it was stopped, a bump appearing in it’s stomach. That’s when the skin broke and the other jumped out, blood rolling off him and sizzling.

His sash seemed holographic, edges sharper than a blade and began returning back to cloth. The injured lizard laid there, unnaturally twitching and then went slack. All the aliens had gone silent by this time, leaning forward in their seats in anticipation. Walking on top of the carcass, the human knelt down and slammed his hand into the lizard’s eye. He pulled his hand back to reveal a black badge, dripping with blood and had the Underground’s insignia painted on in red. The aliens started bursting out into a cheer, fights breaking among themselves and their drinks being thrown. When a hand rested on Steven’s shoulder he tensed up, spinning around only to relax when he found it was just Chilled.

“You alright?” Chilled whispered,  Steven slowly nodding while eyeing the device being handed over to him. It was the same exact one Chilled had just a bit cleaner; a language translator. He slipped it into his ear, glancing around and noticing how no one paid any attention towards them. “I’m sorry I didn’t head out. I got led out a different way by Ohm. I did get you a ship, though,” Steven nodded again, pressing a button on the translator. Suddenly all the words around him began making sense and he was able to understand every conversation, the majority of them being drunken gibberish. He faced the fight once again, watching the cage fighter walk around the arena and catch a few drinks that slipped through the bars. Cheers rose up from the crowd once again, Chilled tugging on Steven’s arm. “We should start moving before things here get rough.”

“I need to get answers,” Steven replied back quickly, noticing the fighter start walking towards them. “Who are you?” He whispered when the man stopped by the two, watching the black blood roll down his bandaged arms.

“Meet me up on the surface in an hour,” the man pulled something off from around his neck and slipped it through the bars, ignoring the electricity bouncing off his arms and dropping the item in Steven’s hands. “I’ll see you there.” Then he turned and left for the open door, holding the medal up to signify his win. Steven followed Chilled out the arena, eyeing the dog tags in his hand. They were built similar to his own, the tags themselves severely charred up and the name scratched out. When Steven flipped the tag over something inside him sparked, noticing the name that was messily scratched on.

“Aphex,” he read out loud and for a split second, the area around him changed. For just a second Steven was standing in a dimly lit room, blurry faced people surrounding him except there was one that stood out against the rest. One who stood by his side holding some sort of glass and talking with a wordless voice. Shaking his head to clear his mind, Steven tightened his grip on the tag as the chain slipped through his fingers. “That person… He’s like me. We have to see him, Chilled,” Steven faced Chilled who seemed hesitant about the whole ordeal. “Please? I need answers and you're the only one I can trust for in case things go south.”

“I… Alright, but if things get messy up there we’re leaving without another word.” Chilled hesitantly agreed, taking Steven’s wrist and squeezing through a narrow opening the crowd made. Steven couldn’t help smiling in slight victory, running his thumb over the scratchy letters and feeling his own dog tags press against his chest. Yet that image kept his mind reeling and the face seemed so familiar even though he couldn’t put his finger on it. Just who is this person?


End file.
